I have to stop and give some condolence to the family of actress Jacqueline Courtney. The one time star of NBC’s “Another World” and a long time player on ABC’s “One Life to Live” was just 64. She died December 20th of melanoma.

Courtney was one half of the soap opera world’s most popular couple ever. She played Alice Matthews Frame on “Another World” from its first day in 1964 to the day she was unceremoniously dismissed from the show ten years later. She and George Reinholt played lovers, and Courtney was part of the show’s original family. She and Reinholt put the show on the map. But the show’s producer resented them, and the headwriter thought he was being smart to get rid of them. The pair went over to “One Life,” the competing soap, and were quite successful. “Another World” petered out after the 1970s and never regained its footing.

Alice and Steve were so much fun back in high school days. We used to laugh because Reinholt talked into his tie a lot. Jackie Courtney was accused of reading lines off her nurses’ uniform cuffs. But they were memorizing 40 pages of dialogue a day. Now the soaps use TelePrompters. But Jackie’s Alice was a super heroine, and one you got a kick out of every day. Thanks for everything, Jacqueline Courtney.

Author

Roger Friedman began his Showbiz411 column in April 2009 after 10 years with Fox News. He writes for Parade magazine and has written for Details, Vogue, the New York Times, Post, and Daily News and many other publications. He is the writer and co-producer of "Only the Strong Survive," a selection of the Cannes, Sundance, and Telluride Film festivals.

I was just reminiscing about old soaps I originally watched. They were the ones that got me ‘hooked’ and it was somewhere around 1968-1970 when I began watching. I remember being totally enchanted by Steve and Alice. I thought they were a couple made in heaven. As an aside, I was absolutely green with envy over her gorgeous hair.

And so, imagine my shock and sadness at just now finding out about her passing. I am so sorry that she seems to have been overlooked by an industry where she was one of the daytime pioneers. Very sad. I would have loved to have seen her these many past years. When actors and actresses disappear, as she did, you just assume they want to have private lives and not be a part of that grind anymore. I am so sorry to read that it seems not to have been the case for her.

Her daughter sounds very lovely and I extend my condolences to her. My mother was only 49 when I lost her to cancer – ironically, that is when I turned to watching soaps, many of them. This young girl has also lost her mother at a much too young age.

Jacquie, indeed, was a superstar. Not only did this lady have presence, she was an intriguing actress. Through her memorable characters, Jacquie played everything from fragile to fierce. Sadly, she was underrated by her peers and the medium’s movers and shakers, but she was ADORED by her many fans. She made soap watching such a pleasure! I will never forget her.

I was very sad to hear of Jackies passing. My mom loved her and George Reinholt and has constantly asked the same question why wasn’t she on some soap all these years she was so wonderful. She was still a very young woman, I wasn’t even aware she was sick as I would of loved to had writtern to her about how much she was adored and enjoyed for all her years on Another World and One Life To Live.

I received a nice letter and autographed Photo from Jacqueline Courtney after Another World let her go from the show the last time she appeared.I was so happy that she was back,but unfortunately,they never gave her much material.I wrote her a letter expressing my sadness over her no longer being on the show.I was a fan of hers who waited for her to return to Daytime.It will always be a mystery as to why that never happened.I will forever have your body of work etched in my head and heart.Rest in peace sweet one…

Though Jacqueline Courtney was appreciated by her fans, it is sad that she was never recognized with even an Emmy nomination. She gave terrific performances on both ‘Another Wold’ and ‘One Life to Live’. She should have still be working in the industry.